NEWS RELEASE:

SPEND NEW YEAR’S EVE AND NEW YEAR’S DAY IN PERU ON THE WNMU MUSEUM/MRAC ART & CULTURE TOUR TO PERU!

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: MAY 19, 2005

CONTACT: DR. CYNTHIA ANN BETTISON, DIRECTOR & ARCHAEOLOGIST, WNMU MUSEUM, 505-538-6386

Celebrate New Year’s Eve and New Year’s Day in Peru! Western New Mexico University Museum and the Mimbres Region Arts Council are extremely excited to offer again, due to popular demand, a fabulous 9-day/8-night tour to Lima, Cuzco, the Sacred Valley and Machu Picchu, Peru. Immerse yourself in Peruvian culture by exploring Peru’s incredible heritage at some of its most fascinating archaeological sites, meeting the warm and wonderful people of Peru, and touring magnificent Machu Picchu at sunrise!

Discover colonial Lima by visiting the Plaza de Armas and the resting place of Pizarro. Gain an appreciation for Peru’s complicated prehistory and numerous ancient cultures at museums in Lima and Cuzco, including Lima’s famous Gold Museum. Celebrate New Year’s Eve in the ancient capitol of the Incas, Cuzco and New Year’s Day in the magnificent Sacred Valley of the Incas outside Cuzco exploring Inca fortresses and shopping for arts and crafts at the celebrated Pisac market.

What tour to Peru would be complete without an overnight visit to one of the most spectacular sites in all of the Americas—Machu Picchu? Perched on a ridge more than 2,000 feet above the Urubamba River and not visible from lower elevations, Hiram Bingham stumbled upon this ancient ceremonial center of the royal Incas in 1911. Tour participants spend a day discovering this ancient city with us and marvel at the intricate, precise Inca stonework and have the option of capping their memorable visit to Machu Picchu with a sunrise tour the following morning!

Like our other Arts & Culture Tours, this tour is designed to balance exploration of past and present cultures with, of course, shopping for native arts and crafts.

The WNMU Museum/MRAC Arts and Culture Tour of Peru is of the highest quality with superior first-class accommodations from beginning to end, English-speaking tour guides, and private deluxe motor coaches. The $3199 per person double-occupancy fee is inclusive of roundtrip airfare from Dallas, flights and ground transportation within Peru, entrance fees, and most meals at quality Peruvian restaurants. For single travelers, there is a $999 single room supplement fee.

This tour is an unforgettable experience! Join your tour leaders, Dr. Cynthia Ann Bettison, Director & Archaeologist, Western New Mexico University Museum, and Faye McCalmont, Executive Director of the Mimbres Region Arts Council for an insider’s tour of some of the most magnificent places in Peru, personal insights on Peruvian prehistory, culture, and art from Cynthia and your Peruvian tour guides, and tips on Peruvian arts, crafts, and textiles from Faye.

Tour brochures and information about the upcoming Peru Night are available at WNMU Museum (538-6386) and MRAC (538-2505), or by e-mailing museuminfo@wnmu.edu. Tour information and photographs from the January 2005 tour are available at www.mimbresarts.org under Art & Culture Tours, Peru.